Business in brief

A U.S. jury’s $1 billion verdict against Samsung for what rival Apple claimed was the illegal copying of its iPhone and iPad designs signals a turning point for the South Korean electronics giant known for its prowess in adapting the innovations of others and nimbly executing production.

The verdict not only jolted the world of global gadgetry but also likely sparked some soul-searching in Suwon, South Korea, where the family-run Samsung conglomerate is based.

The world’s top seller of smartphones finds itself in the post-iPhone reality, where the decades-long practice of industry mimicry now can mean a bruising legal challenge.

WASHINGTON

U.S. bank earnings rose 21 percent in the April-June quarter and lending to consumers increased, adding to evidence that the industry is strengthening four years after the financial crisis.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Tuesday the banking industry earned $34.5 billion in the second quarter, up from $28.5 billion in the second quarter of 2011.

About 63 percent of U.S. banks reported improved earnings as they were able to set aside less for losses on loans. The number of troubled banks fell for the fifth straight quarter.

SAN FRANCISCO

Lexmark is jettisoning its inkjet printers and laying off 1,700 workers as paper becomes increasingly passe in an age of ever-sleeker digital devices and online photo albums on Internet hangouts like Facebook.

The shake-up announced Tuesday is the latest fallout from the growing popularity of smartphones and tablet computers that make it easier to store and retrieve content from anywhere with an Internet connection. As a result computer printers are used less frequently, especially at home.

That’s hurting printer makers, where revenue is falling at the same time profit margins are being squeezed by fierce competition.

FRANKFURT, Germany

European Central Bank head Mario Draghi called off his trip to the annual Jackson Hole conference of central bankers this week due to a heavy workload as the bank works on its eagerly awaited plan to lower borrowing costs for struggling governments.

The ECB holds a key meeting Sept. 6 where plans to intervene in bond markets will be discussed. A spokesperson for the bank said Tuesday that Draghi decided not to go to the Wyoming meeting at the end of this week “because of the heavy workload foreseen in the next few days.”

ALBANY, N.Y.

New York officials are investigating marketing and health claims made by several energy drink makers.

A person familiar with the inquiry, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation hasn’t yet been made public, says New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman issued subpoenas this summer to the makers of 5-Hour Energy, AMP and Monster energy drinks.

Earlier this month, Monster Beverage Corp. disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that a state attorney general had sent it a subpoena. The firm didn’t reveal which state it was, but the person familiar with the inquiry said it was New York.